Chinese AI startup Manus, which returned to an independent path after a sale to Meta fell through, is seeking to raise $500 million at a valuation of $4 billion.
TechCrunch reported on Sept. 18 that IDG Capital, Bowy Capital, battery maker CATL and existing investors Tencent, HSG and ZhenFund have been mentioned as potential participants in the investment. Manus is also considering restructuring to prepare for a Hong Kong initial public offering.
Meta announced last December that it would acquire Manus for $2 billion, but the deal ultimately collapsed after Chinese government intervention over concerns that AI talent and researchers would flow overseas.
Manus later carried out a separation process from Meta and, as part of that, told users in August to export their data directly and back it up.
This month, Manus formalised the resumption of independent operations and said its founding team will continue to lead the company. Manus offers a chatbot, vibe coding tools and browser assistant functions.
Chi-gyu Hwang
delight@d-today.co.kr